good morning, coast to coast cold, temperatures plunge below freezing all across the country. even in parts of florida, and it looks like the arctic air could stick around for days. lockdown -- chaos at one of the nation's busiest airports after a security breach. an entire terminal closed down. thousands of passengers rescreened. this, as tough new procedures are put into place for thousands of u.s.bound flights. and ski break -- tiger woods' wife, elin, hits the slopes in france without her husband.

as for tiger, his whereabouts seem to be anyone's guess today, as for tiger, his whereabouts seem to be anyone's guess today, monday, january 4th, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning, welcome to "today" on a monday morning. blustery monday morning as you can see, i'm matt lauer. >> and i'm meredith vieira. happy new year to you. >> happy new year to you. seems like i haven't seen you for a while, but one day we were together. >> how did you spend the day? >> very quietly. how about you. >> the boys left for college, so i drove them to the airport. >> sorry about the long security lines, just wait. we'll see you next year. one thing for sure, this year is tarting off bitter cold. practically the entire country dealing with a blast of arctic air. it's been four weeks to the

day since susan pauowell, a uta mother of two vanished mysteriously. we'll be joined by a new effort to uncover clues in the case. and the so-called tiger woods' defense being used by the lawyer for the mack accused of blackmailing david letterman. in court papers, joe halderman's attorney is using a aspect of the woods' sex scandal to get his client's charges dismissed. we're going to begin with the deep freeze that's gripping much of the country. we'll get to al's forecast in just a moment. we'll start with nbc's jeff rossen, who is in new york's times square, freezing. jeff, good morning. >> reporter: a few blocks away, it feels like you sent me to siberia. in new york city, you saw it on the plaza, 20 degrees outside.

with the wind chill, it feels about five or six degrees. i was going to complain about that. but then i looked up the temperature in des moines, eye. with the wind chill there, it feels like negative 25. a lot of cities this morning are dealing with the bitterly cold like we are. other cities are dealing with the heavy snow, many are dealing with both at once. as snow piles up in the northeast -- and temperatures dip well below zero in the midwest -- you have the winter weather-lovers -- >> it's like a winter wonderland. >> and the haters. >> it's unreal. it's blizzard. >> reporter: in indiana, it's so cold -- even the street salt won't melt the ice. >> the roads are in poor condition. roads are snow-packed. slick and hazardous. >> reporter: in buffalo, new york, fans could barely see sunday's bills-colts game. near whiteout conditions on the field. and the brain-freeze in the

stands. in minneapolis, firefighters struggled when stores and homes went up in flames. the fire hydrants were iced over. in detroit, an nbc viewer took home video of this ice rescue. three teenagers were stranded when their boat got stuck in icy waters. and in new york city, the thrill of new year's eve seems like an after-thought. bundled up with wind chills in the single digits. >> this is ridiculous. this is too cold. >> you have exposed skin and you go outside, you don't have all your skin covered, you can get frostbitten in about ten minutes, this is some dangerous cold. >> reporter: dangerous for drivers, too. >> ice, a lot of cars in ditches. we missed, we missed the south. >> it's not much better there. temperatures in jacksonville, florida, dipped into the 30s overnight. shelters have opened their doors, and beds. >> i think we're hovering somewhere around 50 or 60. but they keep coming in. so it's going to be a long night. >> reporter: and a long week to come. the cold isn't going anywhere.

>> it's fabulous. we love it. >> it's beautiful! >> reporter: yeah, beautiful. that's the word i was going to use. only one thing worse than the cold, and that's the strong winds blowing the cold right into your face. in fact, there was a strong winds in the northeast over the weekend. there were flight delays, two hours or more, from boston down to d.c. matt, i know you'll feel our pain on the plaza in just a little bit. >> we're feeling your pain right now. sorry about that, jeff. we appreciate it. overnight the temperatures dipped below zero in minneapolis, minnesota where we find the the weather channel's mike seidel. mike, what about the wind chill there, how is it going? >> it's cold out here, nine below zero here. the wind chill now, 22 below zero. and even though it's cold, we're more than 20 degrees above our record low this morning of about 30 below zero. international falls, talk about a bitter weekend, set records saturday and sunday, nearly 40 below. it's cold all across the country, as jeff mentioned. take you out to chicago, where they were bundled up yesterday

against the chill and the wind. temperatures there stuck in the teens. it should be around freezing this time of year in the windy city. and even down in florida, it was bitterly cold for those folks. for tampa, the high yesterday was 46. it should be 70. miami, bundled up with gloves and scarves to a high of 62 degrees. fortunately, not a lot of snow. just the lake-effect. we saw back east, and off lake michigan nearby south bend, not far from chicago, they picked up almost 18 inches of snow. a foot and a half of snow since the first of the year. it will be winding down today and tonight. another shot of arctic air is due in wednesday, thursday and friday. this one, too, will have its sights set on the eastern two-thirds of the country. a bit of a warmup, but another shot of air which will make our teeth chatter going into the latter part of the week and the weekend. back to you. >> that's the the weather channel's mike seidel. >> and al roker is back from sunny and warm pasadena, probably regretting it as he

braves the cold out on the plaza. >> frost and freeze warnings from minnesota down to florida where we've got freeze warnings there. and you can look at the temperatures. these are air temperatures. 34 in international falls, des moines, ten below. omaha, 13. factor in the winds, it feels like 25 below in des moines. five below in chicago. high temperatures will only get up into the sing the digits. chicago up to 19 and the east coast dealing with the cold air. it's not going anywhere. and down in florida, we're talking about temperatures, high temperatures right now, 28 in jacksonville. 40 in fort myers. the wind chills make it feel even worse, with 36 in fort myers, key west, 56. and the bad news is, as mike seidel mentioned, this cold air is not going anywhere. the jet stream is going to continue to reinforce this for today, wednesday we get even colder air. and friday, the cold air continues to come in with the jet stream keeping it locked in in the east.

meredith? >> al, thank you very much. we'll get the rest of al's forecast in a moment. but now to last night's security breach at new jersey's busy newark international airport. that led to grounded flights, long lines and massive delays. it came just hours before tighter security measures were set to go into effect. nbc's ron allen is there for us this morning. ron, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. what a way to end the holiday travel season. terminal c here, which is headquarters for couldn't nental airlines, was shut down for some six or seven hours from about until about 12:45 in the morning yesterday. thousands of flights were canceled. thousands, dozens of flights were canceled, thousands were stranded because somehow, a man apparently here, to meet an arriving flight, got to the other side of the airport, to the secure side of the airport. he went through a passageway or through a door, it's unclear how he got there. and it's unclear why security staff didn't stop him. so the result was that they took everybody who had cleared security, even people who were sitting on airlines and brought them back to the public side of

the airport where they searched that area. with dogs, they looked at videotape trying to identify the man. and some airport officials say they think this man probably doesn't even know what he did. they think it was apparently an innocent mistake. it wasn't a terror situation. the result today is just chaos here at the airport. long lines, some stretching out into the cold. the board says that there are only a few cancellations. most flights seem to be taking off on time. but the chaos in the terminal is just massive. it's going to take a long time for continental and the other airlines here at terminal c to work through this to get things back to normal. meredith? >> ron allen, thank you very much. for more, here's matt. >> now more on those tough new rules starting today on flights into the united states. nbc's pete williams has that part of the story for us. pete, good morning to you. >> reporter: matt, good morning. more than a week after the attempted christmas-day bombing, the transportation security administration has further tightened the rules for travelers coming here from overseas.

and in yemen, where the bombing plot is said to have originated, a new threat has closed the u.s. embassy. starting today, all airlines that fly from overseas to the u.s. must insure that passengers from or traveling through countries deemed high-risk receive full-body pat-downs and have their luggage physically opened up and inspected. that list includes countries that are considered state sponsors of terrorism. or where terror groups are known to operate. the list includes nigeria, where the man accused of the bombing, umar farouk abdulmutallab, is from. and at all overseas airports, more passengers must be selected at random. including some returning americans, for similar enhanced screening. more checked luggage and carry-on bags will also be randomly swabbed, looking for traces of explosives. about 2,000 international flights arrive in the u.s. every

day. and now the british government said it will move immediately to put full-body scanners in all its international airports. able to show what's under a passenger's clothes. >> we've recognized that there are new forms of weapon that are being used by al qaeda, so we've got to respond accordingly. >> reporter: in the persian gulf country of yemen, where the bomb plot originated, the u.s. has shut down its embassy, after intelligence reports indicated that al qaeda terrorists there planned attacks in the capital city. >> both the u.s. and the british embassies have been closed to give the yemeni government an opportunity to thwart the threat and the plans that are afoot right now. >> reporter: the move comes a day after president obama said the man accused of the attempted airplane bombing prepared for the attack in yemen. >> al qaeda and the yemen pennsylvania trained him. >> reporter: just after christmas, al qaeda in yemen called for attacks on western embassy there is. u.s. officials say there's no

discussion now of american military strikes against suspected terror sites in yemen. but the obama administration is sending more money to the government there in counterterrorism aid. >> republican senator jim dement joins us now. >> happy new year to you, matt, good morning. >> one of president obama's chief counterterrorism officials said when it comes to flight 253 and the attempt to blow it up, there is no smoking gun and no single piece of evidence that should have alerted officials to the attempt. do you agree with that. >> the events of the last ten days rye remind us of how important security is at our airports. and we need to remember that it's important that our airport security guards be flexionible and able to change immediately as they are now. and that's why it's so important that we continue our vigilance.

now mr. brennan said there's no smoking gun. but there was a whole lot of smoke, matt, that for a father to come in and say his son is involved in terrorist activities, for passengers to buy a ticket with cash and no checked luggage and international flights, i think the president has agreed that there were a lot of signals here that we should have closed up on. maybe not one smoking gun, but a whole lot of smoke. >> does someone lose his or her job over this, senator? is there someone who was so lax in responsibility that that person is out? >> i think it's a mistake to look for one person. right now, matt. the system failed is the president said. the whole reason for the homeland security agency is to make sure that the different agencies speak to each other. that apparently is not happening. the 9/11 bill that we passed in congress that was supposed to help fix this, missed the most important point. to force these agencies to talk to each other. so we need to go back to basics

here. get the politics out of this. and focus on the security of our country. >> you hear a lot of people now criticizing the president, saying he's taken his eye off the ball with his focus on health care and with the economy, two things that are obviously important to him. is there some reality to that, do you think? or is that political grandstanding? people trying to score points with an attempted terror attack? >> again, i don't think we should try to blame whether it's the president or any other person right now. but a lot of us have been concerned over the last year, that the president did seem to downplay the threat of terror. he doesn't use the word any more. he hesitates to say that there's a war on terror. but in the last few days, he seems to have come around to the idea that there are people in yemen and other places who are intent on hurting americans and i think that puts us all on the same page. and hopefully we can take the politics out of this. focus on security. and the president seems to be in the right place now. >> you say we're all on the same

page. are you the single hold-out, senator, in approving the president's choice for the director of the tsa, errol souters. are you going to hold out on that nomination, or are you going going to come around? >> well unfortunately the president took eight months to even nominate someone for that position. and what i've asked for, matt, is just some debate and a recorded vote. they want to pass mr. southers in secret, without a recorded vote. i think there's some significant issues. i've asked him if he's going to change the policy of collective bargaining within the tsa and he will not give me a straight answer. secretary napolitano said she intends to submit our airport security to collective bargaining. this is all about politics, and not security. what i want is a few hours of debate on mr. southers, to help focus the nation back on security. and get this politics, particularly union politics out

of our security apparatus. >> senator jim demint, thanks for your time this morning, i appreciate it. >> thank you. let's get a check of the rest of the morning's top stories, ann curry back at the news desk, back to you. >> happy new year to you, meredith and matt and to you. in news, the christmas terror scare is on president obama's agenda as he heads back to the white house this morning from his vacation in hawaii. we've got nbc's chief white house correspondent, chuck todd, joining us from honolulu. the president is actually facing a number ever big issues this week. >> reporter: he sure is, ann. when he left he delayed his start of his vacation by a day, because he with a trying to get health care through the senate. well now he left a little bit early on his way back to washington. he should get there by lunchtime today. because of all the things on his plate, including that terror agenda, tomorrow he's got the big meeting with his security and intelligence teams. i'm told no heads going to roll. there isn't going to be a single person held accountable for now. though when congress weighs in

and has congressional hearings, how certain people do at those congressional hearings. whether it's dennis blair, director of national intelligence, janet napolitano or michael lighter, head of the national terrorism center. how they perform could dictate how long they're in their job. this week we'll hear from health care and by friday, new unemployment numbers. so a busy year already kicks off for the president. >> nbc's chuck todd, safe travel home. the military says four u.s. troops were killed on sunday by a roadside bomb in southern afghanistan, the first u.s. combat deaths in afghanistan this year. in china, a highway overpass under construction collapsed on sunday, seven died, 30 others hurt. some critically. rescue workers are looking for possible victims. there was a scare on sunday, for passengers on an air berlin plane from germany to the canary islands. the plane skidded off a runway after the pilot aborted takeoff. there were no reports of injuries. in finland, a passenger train apparently lost its brakes

and slammed into the lobby of a hotel in helsinki. despite the damage, no one was seriously injured. overseas markets are starting offer the first trading day in the new year mostly higher. cnbc's melissa lee is at the new york stock exchange. melissa, also higher today -- oil. >> that's right, ann. oil hitting a two-month high, zipping past $80 a barrel. russia, the world's largest oil and gas producers has halted supplies to belarus, there was that out of china showing that manufacturing expanded at the fastest pace in five years. underscoring the need for energy and oil. keep in mind that today's gains, so far early in the new year are on top of the 78% gain in oil in 2009. >> thanks so much. and "avatar" held onto the top spot at the weekend box office and made a milestone. it became the fifth movie ever to pass the $1 billion mark worldwide. and director james cameron becomes the only film maker to

direct top movies that have topped $1 billion, the other "titani "titanic." let's go back to you three. >> our director, joe michaels have seen it three times. but he's got a lot of other issues. >> he fell asleep >> bitterly cold here. it feels like 14 at the airport, 11, when shell in westminster, attended the state line. we are only going up to 31

today. today. mostly meredith? >> al, thank you. still no sighting of tiger woods since his now-infamous accident and the sex scandal that followed. by his wife, elin has turned up in europe. >> reporter: the scandal-hungry british tabloid newspapers are feasting on the tiger woods' story. his estranged wife, elin nordegren spotted by the paparazzi on ski slopes in the french alps. reportedly staying at an $8,000 a night chalet under heavy security. >> it does look like that elin is moving on.

the fact is, she's not just sitting at home, crying, she's out with people who love her, she loves and she's spending time there. >> it's a vacation that nordegren can easily afford, especially if the stories about her demanding a $300 million divorce payout from woods are true. >> by all accounts, it looks like this couple is not going to go the distance. we're hearing more and more frequently rumors that elin is actually looking to plan a new life without her husband. >> reporter: woods, meanwhile, hasn't been seen lately. the blogosphere is blazing with rumors that he's eastern in arizona in treatment for section addiction, in florida, or off somewhere with one of his mistresses. >> right now he's keeping a low profile and no one really knows where he is. >> reporter: and no word on when tiger woods will return to the pro golf circuit, his critics saying while he may rack up more major victories in the future. his mystique as a superstar player is gone now. while barring a reconciliation,

his wife, elin, may wind up as a very wealthy divorcee. just ahead, the latest on the bizarre connection being made between the tiger woods scandal and the alleged blackmail attempt on david letterman, b

just ahead, the man suspected of murdering his own twin sisters, aunt and 6-year-old cousin on thanksgiving day, arrested thanks to a couple watching "america's most wanted."

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. time for a check of the morning commute with traffic pulse 11 and sarah caldwell. >> it looks like vacation is over out there. accident location at johnnycake and woodlawn. it is icy in that area, and

that does involve a pedestrian struck. another one involving a pedestrian at orleans and lochwood avenue. " will place forming around the area at southbound 95, and southbound 795. normal delays on the outer loop. adelphi road and joppa farm road, and as of 9:00 a.m. this morning, curtis creek drop bridge will shut down due to road work. that is expected to be in place until february 12. watch for delays this morning as we get closer to 9:00 a.m.. not too bad on the west side. you are going to get a little bit heavier ones who get to the baltimore national pike. looking hectic here. white marsh to the beltway northeast. sandra has a check on the

forecast. >> cluster yet again today. -- plus three yet again today. 11 is the wind chill in westminster. it feels like 11 around easton and st. michael's. winds are very gusty out of the west and northwest. actual high today is still below freezing. only up to 31 degrees. increasing clouds this afternoon. a slight chance for snow flurries or even a snow showers. good chance of snow by friday. >> next update in 25 minutes.

7:0 on this monday morning, january 4th, 2010, you're looking at new york's times square, where it is right around 20 degrees. meanwhile, here in rockefeller plaza, the tree is still shining brightly. if you haven't seen it, you only have a few days left. because it comes down this thursday. >> don't smile so broadly. >> i'm meredith vieira, alongside matt lauer. have you taken your tree down? >> yes, took it down last week. poof, gone. >> new year, fresh start.

>> always. just ahead, the unusual connection the attorney for the man accused of trying to extort david letterman is trying to make to the tiger woods' sex scandal. we'll talk exclusively to lawyers for both letterman and his alleged blackmailer in just a couple of minutes. also ahead, four weeks ago today, utah mother, susan powell was reported missing, just ahead, the latest on the search and talk exclusively to powell's best friend about an effort now getting under way. on a much, much lighter note -- how did she do? we'll catch up with the illinois woman who spent an entire year following oprah winfrey's every piece of advice. but we're going to begin this half hour with the end of a month-long hunt for a man accused of killing four people at thanksgiving dinner in florida. in a moment we'll talk exclusively to the parents of the youngest victim. but first, nbc's kerry sanders has details. >> reporter: caught -- fugitive paul merhige. accused of the thanksgiving-day slaughter of four family

members. the 35-year-old was holed up in a florida keys' motel. he had stockpiled his own food, cleaned his own motel room. covered his car. checked in, under a false name. >> somebody knows where this guy is. >> reporter: but saturday, when the tv show, "america's most wanted" promoed its broadcast on the murders and the elusive miami suspect -- >> there is a $100,000 reward that you'll be guaranteed to get if you do the right thing. make that call. >> reporter: an alert motel owner realized the guest in a room on the second floor was merhige. >> my daughter you know, was right next to him. in an apartment right next to him and that made me feel like, oh, my god, i got a serial killer next to my daughter. >> so while i was watching "america's most wanted" i knew that paul was watching "america's most wanted." but i knew something that he didn't. i knew that his hotel room was being surrounded. and the irony was pretty sweet. >> reporter: jim's daughter, 6-year-old makayla was murdered

thanksgiving day as she slept in her bed. merhige is also accused of killing his aunt and twin sisters. >> this is for the thanksgiving tragedy in jupiter. where he killed the four people. >> reporter: the community worked to get the word out, even passing out flyers. but it was a security video broadcast on the tv promo that led to the call to "america's most wanted" tipline. the sitton family feared that he might return and kill what he had started. the with merhige in custody, the griff-stricken family can at least give up that worry. and for "america's most wanted" and john walsh, this arrest now brings 1,099 fugitives brought to justice. for "today," kerry sanders, nbc news, jupiter. florida. >> jim and muriel sitton are the parents of 6-year-old victim, makayla. john walsh is the host of

"america's most wanted." good morning to you all. jim, if i could start with you, it took 38 days, but the man who killed your little girl is finally behind bars. how would you describe how you are feeling right now? >> well i was very relieved when he was caught and captured. because we've had 24-hour, seven day a week protection of our house. afraid that paul would be coming back to our home to finish what he had started on thanksgiving night. and i felt my wife and her father were in danger. and so we were very relieved that he was found. our daughter's bedroom is still empty. so we're not jumping up and down wi with jubilation, but at least we're not having to look over our shoulders every second. >> muriel i know you and your family have had time to reflect on what happened. you hadn't seen your cousin in quite a while.

your husband hadn't seen him for ten years prior to him coming to your home on thanksgiving. do you have any clearer sense in your own mind, why he would do something like this? >> no. i would have no idea why such he would commit such a horrible, horrific, horrific act. and walk into my daughter's room and brutally kill her. it's an indescribable pain to lose a child. but it's, it's even more indescribable to have lost your child in the executed in her bedroom. and i'm still haunted with the idea of was she asleep? was she not asleep? what did she hear, what did she see. so i have no idea what, what would, what kind of evil would be in such a person, such a monster that would do such a thing. and take the lives of three other people as well. >> john, if i can bring you in. i know the case became very

personal for you. why did you want to feature this particular story? >> well, meredith, i've walked in their shoes and my wife and i were talking about the horrible pain that they must have been going through. and when this coward wasn't caught after weeks, i decided to change the way we were doing it on "america's most wanted." we had put little clips on. and i had watched jim and muriel on television, their quiet digni dignity, their grace, we need justice, we fear for our lives, we fear this guy will try to come back and do the rest of the family, murder of the rest of the family. so we decided to go to florida. i wanted to meet jim and i wanted to meet muriel. i thought if we put the white-hot spotlight on this case. and if people saw their pain, that they would do the right thing. and saturday night, the right thing happened. those people in the keys, the motel owners made the call.

and i was watching the show and i got to talk to jim. and i had been praying that somehow we could end this case and get justice for little makayla. my son, adam, was six years old when he was murdered. my wife and i prayed for the sittons and i talked to jim saturday night and said, this part of the painful journey is over and please give my best to muriel. these are gracious, good, good people that needed closure to this case. >> jim, i know you wanted to say something directly to john, i wanted to afford you that opportunity now. >> yes. i just wanted to say, john, i admire and respect what you're doing and i thank you so much for putting that monster's face nationwide, international. and without "america's most wanted" he may still be on the loose. and i just thank you so much. i admire that you took your tragedy and turned it into something really good and i hope to be able to do the same thing. >> jim, before i let you go. i'm sure this arrest comes as a

great relief to you. if there is a trial, then the nightmare will be reopened. are you prepared to face paul merhige? do you want to look him in the eye again? >> i was hoping that when he, i was hoping he would have been killed at capture. now he's allowed to torment and torture our family you know, for years to come. and you know, i'm not seeking vengeance in this case. but i do want justice. and i do know that either here on earth or in eternity, paul will get justice. and that's all we're seeking. how would i feel to face him? i'll gladly look into his eye. i know he feels nothing. he has no remorse. he's like an animal. but i do want to stand in front of him and just show him that i'm not backing down.

and i'm not afraid of him. >> jim and muriel sitton, thank you for joining us this morning. our condolences and john walsh, always a pleasure to see you. thank you, both. now let's get a check of the weather from al. as we take a look at see what's going on for the week ahead, well as we've been telling you, below-normal temperatures forren of the middle of the country. mid-week, light snow from the gulf coast. wet in the pacific northwest and the latter part of the week, we've got the cold air back in again for the eastern half of the u.s. th >> today is going to be a very cold day. right now it feels like the low teens outside. winds aren't northwest league, a 15 to 20, and could

don't forget, any time you need to check your weather, you can go to the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. meredith? al, thank you. up next, the lawyer for david letterman's accused blackmailer, using the so-called tiger woods' defense. could it work? we'll talk to the attorneys on both sides, after this.

we're back at 7:42 with a new legal twist in the david letterman saga. it involves the tiger woods' sex scandal. nbc's peter alexander is here with details on this. peter, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, happy new year to you. it's been called the tiger woods defense. in recently-filed court papers, the lawyer for david letterman's accused extortionist is invoking the tiger woods scandal. claiming if it's not a crime for tiger woods' mistresses to seek payoffs -- two iconings, to unforgotable sex scandals that dominated the tabloids for months. >> i have, had sex with women who worked for me on this show. >> reporter: david letterman became a punchline first, making his stunning admission in october, after suspended cbs news producer, joe halderman,

allegedly tried to extort $2 million from the comedian for keeping quiet about his romantic affairs. weeks later, tiger's turn, acknowledging his own infidelity as a sealingly never-ending parade of women marched through the headlines. but is that where the similarities between the two scandals end? in these recently-released court papers, halderman's lawyer took another swing at getting his client's case dismissed, citing numerous news reports that claimed tiger woods paid alleged mistress, rachel uchitel as much as $5 for her silence. but halderman's lawyer points out that prosecutors didn't file charges against uchitel or any charges against her lawyer. why not? according to halderman's lawyer, because their behavior was capitalist, not criminal. he adds, the reality is that evidence of celebrity misdeeds has a significant fair market value. saying his client's offer was just a business transaction.

and that no crime was committed here. letterman's lawyer fired back, telling nbc news, this was not a sale of anything legitimate. this was classic extortion. legal experts say halderman's strategy sounds like a stretch. >> it's almost not a legal argument, it's almost a water cooler argument. it's like getting a loan if a bank to holding up a bank and saying, hey, in both cases, we ended up with the money. >> reporter: investigative reporter, jarmd posner agrees, his reporting is cited several times in the new halderman court filing. >> they're trying to fit it into the tiger woods analogy, even though it doesn't. in the hope that it will confuse the public, confuse the jury pool a little bit. and maybe make people more sympathetic to him. >> reporter: we could find out soon if the strategy works, joe halderman is due back in a new york state supreme court, matt, january 19th. >> peter, thank you very much. we're joined now exclusively by joe halderman's attorney, jerry shargel and daniel horowitz who

represents david letterman. good morning to both of you. i'll be honest with you, some people say this is apples and oranges you're trying to compare. other people are more open-minded about this. saying wait a second, he has pointed out what seem to be legal contradictions. but legal contradictions aside, is there any legal ground or are there any legal grounds for dismissing this case based on the tiger woods' story? >> tiger woods story is not the tiger woods' defense. that's the reaction principally of the tabloids. the tiger woods story is a an analogy. that was filed in a legal brief contained in a legal brief, in support of our legal argument. lawyers do that all the time. and analogies are used all the time. and i think the analogy is useful to show as i've argued from the beginning, that commercial transactions take place like this. in law offices throughout the country. >> here's my take on this. if you're saying, look, here are these ladies, who allegedly had affairs with tiger woods, and

who allegedly, because we don't know, allegedly received some money not to talk about those affairs, my take is this, in some ways might a judge read this and say, yeah, you're right, a pox on all their houses had they're all guilty of some extortion, let's get back to the trial at hand here. >> i don't think so. because not every threat is tantamount to extortion. the second-highest court in the country has said that. not every threat to reveal someone's secrets is extortion. and our opinion is that this wasn't extortion with joe halderman. >> so you don't think by filing this motion and making this comparison you've admitted guilt on the part of joe halderman in this case? >> absolutely not. because joe halderman in my view, is not guilty of any offense. >> let my bring mr. horowitz in. dan, what was your initial response when you heard this motion to dismiss? >> our response is that this is just an attempt to once again,

shift focus away from some very difficult facts for mr. halderman. facts that clearly indicate that the only thing that was on his mind was to blackmail david letterman. you cannot get away with analogies and theories here, when you look at all the facts and circumstances. that mr. halderman is accused of standing outside mr. letterman's apartment at 6:00 in the morning, delivering a blackmail package that threatened him personally and professionally. demanding a big chunk of money. and then in tape-recorded conversations, demanding $2 million for silence. that's classic blackmail, no matter how many analogies you want to make to tabloid stories. that frankly have nothing to do with this case. >> i imagine you're feeling is that the judge in this case is going to take no time and knock this right out? >> that's absolutely right. i don't think this is persuasive to the judge at all. the judge is going to look at the facts and the law. the facts in this case. the facts against mr. halderman.

not the facts in some professional golfer's life. >> you cite, jerry, gloria alred and her client, rachel uchitel and perhaps gloria allred is perhaps guilty of some crime. >> i say the opposite, she's not guilty of any crime. >> if they do this, it's no better than what your client has done. >> i don't say this at all. i say she's kbhited no crime. that it's capitalist, not criminal. that she was permitted 20 do this. that's my point all along. there are two things i want to say. one is isn't it curious, that david letterman has engaged a lawyer to go out and front of the district attorney's office in making these arguments? i wonder whether they have confidence in the new york county district attorney's office. quite unusual. that's one. number two, i would like to put this, get to the core of this allegation. the implicit message, david letterman has admitted to the affair. the implicit message in a situation like this, is

letterman saying, not explicitly, he's never met halderman. is david letterman saying, you better not say anything. you better keep this confidential. you better keep this quiet. that's the message. don't go out there with this story. halderman said, wrong. i am going to go out there with this story. i've been hurt, i've been destroyed. my relationship with a woman that i loved has been, has been totally, totally destroyed. i'm going to go out there. i'm going to go out there with a book, a screenplay, a treatment, whatever form i choose. but if you, david letterman, want this to remain confidential, i am willing to enter into a contract with you. >> capitalism, not criminality. >> go ahead, mr. horowitz. >> i would say what jerry has just done is stood the facts directly on their head. it was not mr. letterman that approached mr. halderman. it was mr. halderman who threatened dave and his family and said, for a price, i will remain silent. that is classic blackmail. this is not the sale of some

commercial screenplay treatment. again, if you look at all of the facts here that standing outside the apartment, i can run through the litany again. it all adds up to blackmail, matt. >> let me end with jerry. there were reports in the papers last week that there was some plea deal at least being attempted here, a year in prison perhaps for a guilty plea on the part of your client. can you confirm or deny that? >> i'll deny it, because the district attorney's office denies planting that story. it certainly didn't come from me. it does not describe any plea negotiation that i was involved in. >> thank you both. and we'll be following this story closely. >> thank you, matt. we're back right after this.

just ahead, one month after she disappeared, where is missing utah mother, susan powell? >> her best friend speaks out in an exclusive interview, after your local news and weather.

st opstop

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i'm stan stovall. want to get a check on the morning commute with traffic pulse 11. >> we are seeing what we normally see as folks had back to work in the school. johnnycake and woodlawn, we have an accident there. southbound 29 just past 40 come watch for an accident. delays forming around the area. southbound 795 approaching the beltway on the west side, and

backing down on the west side out of of just past i-70. cost downed chopper wrote, -- was down joppa road, icy conditions reported there, so use caution when you travel. west side of liberty, not too bad, but you are starting to back down at i-70. 95 and the white marsh area, it is a bit heavier. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> 14 at the airport, could wind chill out westminster is only 12. still blustery out of the west and northwest, and gusts of up to 35 are possible throughout the afternoon. also possible this afternoon, flurries, with weak upper level disturbances rotating through

prepar. more of the same, mid-thirties tomorrow. by friday, much colder. a high of only 29. a good chance of seeing more snow showers. >> check the bottom of your screen for updated news and traffic information. our next live update in 25 minutes.

8 :00 now on a monday morning, it's the fourth day of january, 2010, or 2010, whichever you prefer. i'll tell you what, these people probably would prefer that it's a little warmer here in the northeast. we've got frigid temperatures of 20 degrees. we've got wind, which makes it feel like it's in the single digits. and al roker, if you were watching the show earlier said, not warm enough any time soon. >> nope. >> that's all right. it's winter, right? >> you need a hat, young lady.

>> i know i do, i wasn't thinking. i've got the scarf, i need the hat. >> and you've got a cold, too. you need to be careful. >> thank you. what a gentleman. >> 0 out on the plaza, i'm matt lauer, along with meredith vieira and al roker. it's been a month since a utah mother, susan powell disappeared without a trace. police have had no major leads in the case in the last couple of weeks. now her best friend is speaking out. with us this morning, she's launching a media blitz to try to make sure that susan powell's name and face will not leave the headlines. we're going to talk to her in just a couple of minutes. on a much lighter note, you'll meet the woman who spent a year living her life according to the advice that oprah winfrey doled out. everything from her wardrobe to her relationships to her diet. we're going to ask her what she learned and if she would do it again. she wrote this book, she actually was on the "today show" in october. >> i remember. >> of last year. she writes that she's getting her makeup put on. she says, i want to feel pretty

when i sit across from dreamy matt lauer. she goes on to say -- >> al says the same thing every morning. >> she goes on to say, just as i feel i've gotten warmed up, matt is hilarious, welcoming and fun to talk to. >> this should be a bestseller, i recommend it to everyone. go out and buy this. >> his ego is now this big. >> how much is this? >> not enough. >> whatever it is, it's a bargain. >> she's dating stedman graham right now. unbelievable. and just 39 days to go until the opening, 39 days until the opening of the vancouver olympics, we're so excited. apollo ohno, could become the most decorated winter athlete, ever. and we'll be chatting with him in just a bit. >> let's go inside, ann standing by at the news desk with all the headlines, take it away. >> good morning, once again, everybody. in the news this morning, starting today, passengers flying to the u.s. face strict new security measures. all passengers will now have to deal with increased random

searches and the government says that all travelers from pakistan, nigeria, yemen and other countries considered high risk for terrorism from now on will be patted down. the enhanced security was triggered by the attempted christmas-day bombing of a detroitbound jet, allegedly by a nigerian man trained by al qaeda in yemen. security officials meantime in yemen say government forces killed two al qaeda militants today outside the country's capital. the clashes came as the u.s., great britain and france closed their embassies for a second day, because of the terror concerns. president obama returned to washington today, having spent much of his hawaiian vacation dealing with the national security developments. he meets tomorrow with intelligence and security officials to assess the latest threats. a security breach grounded planes for six hours sunday night at newark arth in new jersey. officials say a man walked through an exit into the secure side of the terminal. passengers had to be rescreened while police searched for the man, who was not found. the first week of the new

year is also off to a brutally cold start from the midwest to the east coast. temperatures fell to well below freezing along with heavy snow in some areas. international falls, minnesota hit 35 below zero this morning. with a record 37 below on sunday. the frigid weather reached all the way to florida, where farmers sprayed fruit crops to insulate them with a protective layer of ice. firefighters in michigan used an airboat sunday to rescue three teenaged duck hunters. the team's own boat got jammed with ice. and with temperatures hovering anywhere zero, they decided to sit tight until help arrived. and the new tallest building in the world opens for business today, at more than half a mile high, with more than 160 floors, the burge dubai is more than twice as high as the empire state building. priced at $1.5 billion. it is now 8:04, let's get another check of the weather

from al. >> you know what i just got, a nice hat from the census people. all right. that's all right. and she's got a nice necessarily crunch hat. we're talking winter olympics, but summer olympian, shawn johnson is here. >> i'm here to give you the necessarily crunch bar, seven pounds, and signed by apollo anton ohno and you. it would be great if we could melt this down and have some hot chocolate. well thank you, i'm not even going to eat this, because it's so cool having your signature on it. shawn, thanks so much. what have you been doing? >> nothing much, getting back into the gym, training a little bit and having fun. but i have a challenge to go to him, see what's >> cold and blustery is the rule of the day to day. we will see a high of about 31 degrees. mostly cloudy by this afternoon, with a chance of maybe a

that's your latest weather. meredith. al, thank you very much. up next, we'll talk to the best friend of utah mother, susan powell, exactly a month after her mysterious disappearance, right after this.

we're back now at 8:10, utah mother, susan powell, disappeared exactly four weeks ago today. police consider her husband, josh powell, a person of interest in that case. and so far, there have been no signs of susan. we'll talk to her best friend in a moment. but first, nbc's miguel almaguer

has more. >> reporter: for nearly the last decade, the powells have called west valley city home. and now friends who know the couple well say josh powell plans to move his family permanently to washington state, where he is from in the coming days. in the meantime, several detectives continue to work this case extremely hard. the search for susan powell continues. the vibrant young missing mother of two, who disappeared nearly a month ago. but as the police investigation moves forward, detectives are no closer to finding the 28-year-old than the day she vanished. there are leads, but her trail has gone cold. and privately, many question if she'll ever be found alive. still, charles cox believes his daughter will return home safe. >> i absolutely hold out hope she's alive. i realize there are two thoughts to that and two possibilities. and as her father, i have no choice, i must maintain the hope that she's alive.

>> reporter: police have no suspects in her disappearance, but have named susan's husband, josh powell, a person of interest. investigators never could verify that he went camping in this remote area the day susan was reported missing. detectives say josh powell isn't cooperating with their effort to find susan. >> we want them to post it on their facebook pages. >> reporter: but despite the odds, the search for susan is going viral. today on facebook, twitter and youtube, pictures and video of susan's story are part of the 72-hour web blitz to bring attention to the case. >> we hope that people will familiarize themselves with susan's face. get to know what she looks like. read her description. and then look around. do you see her? >> reporter: although weeks have passed, susan's disappearance is still the focus at dinner tables and with church groups across the salt lake city area. these ribbons will be circulated in her community. a visual reminder that susan is still out there. >> we are trying in any way we can think, to keep the story

alive and keep susan's memory alive. >> reporter: a mom still missing and a search that isn't over. susan powell's father says he was able to see his two grandchildren on christmas day. he says he was not able to talk to his son-in-law. something police here at headquarters still want to do. matt? >> miguel almaguer, thank you very much. kiirsi hellewell is susan powell's very close friend. kiirsi, good morning to you. >> good morning, matt. >> it's been a month now, police say there are no major leads, they still say josh is a person of interest in this case. in your heart you still hold out hope that susan can be found alive? >> i really do. i really hope so. we can't let ourselves let go of that. >> i know you're worried that susan's name and her face will fall from the headlines because a lot of other stories break. and americans kind of move off in other directions. and that's part of this campaign, this media blitz today. tell me a little bit more about it. >> we're asking everybody to

send an email to five friends and ask them to forward it to five of their friends, so that the emails can spread all across the country. we're also asking people to spread it on twitter, on facebook, on youtube, on their blogs, podcasts, everything, every way possible. >> every effort is an important effort. i have to ask the question, why didn't someone do this four weeks ago or three weeks ago? you know, this effort -- i just hope that something like this doesn't come too late. >> i hope not, too. it's taken a lot of planning and as far as i know, i don't think anybody has ever used social media like this before to find a missing person. so we're kind of breaking new ground and trying to figure it out as we go alongs. >> as someone who has spent an awful lot of time with susan and her family, i just would like your reaction to this idea that josh has taken his two, their two sons, ages two and four, to another location, where they're spending time away from the headlines. and i guess away from investigators as well. does his behavior in the wake of

her disappearance, shock you? does it surprise you? does it worry you? >> i think all of the above. i don't think anybody can understand why a husband would do this, would act this way. it's very confusing and it's hard to know what to think. >> susan's father said he had a chance to spend time with his grandchildren over the holidays. have you found out how those kids are doing? >> he says that they seem fairly happy. they seem fairly okay. they miss their mom. they don't know why she's gone, but they're doing okay. >> what would you like people to do? in addition to the media blitz, what would you like people to do? >> i would like them to download flyers, take them around where they live, keep their eyes open and be familiar with susan's face and her story. so if they see anything or remember something unusual, maybe they saw a couple of weeks ago, they can call the police and we can find her. >> we hope that can be accomplished. kiirsi hellewell, thank you very much for your time this morning. thank you. >> if you have any information

on the whereabouts of susan powell, please contact the west valley police department in utah at 801-840-4000. and we will be right back. a pilot. and this is the chevy traverse. it has more cargo space than pilot. including the most space behind the third row. and traverse beats honda on highway gas mileage too. more fuel efficient and 30% more room. maybe traverse can carry that stuff too. the chevy traverse. america's best crossover. compare us to anyone and may the best car win. it all starts with havinglocks more hotels to choose from.. that's why i book with expedia. so i can find someplace familiar... or somewhere more distinctive... nice!

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you choose who to pay and when to pay each bill. pay bills online, keep your budget on track this year with online bill pay. from bank of america. ♪ talk show queen, oprah winfrey, routinely tops the list of the rich and poufwerful. most americans have probably followed one piece of her advice. but one yoga instructor from chicago went a lot further than that. nbc's kevin tibbles has her story. >> reporter: when we first met robin okrant in 2008, she was 100%, 24/7, over the top, oprah. >> we're live in chicago, this is a momentous show. >> reporter: it was all part of a one-year social experiment during which the 37-year-old

chicagoan vowed to follow every single bit of advice oprah doled out. >> every moment of my day can be filled up with these oprah assignments. so it's, it's actually really stressful. it's stressful and a little exhausting. >> reporter: robin bought everything oprah recommended. from vitamins to wardrobe essentials. >> the most mortifying thing to me are my leopard-print flats, which every woman is supposed to have in her closet. says oprah. and maybe i should have left them in my closet. >> reporter: robin even bought the backyard firepit oprah suggested, despite the fact she doesn't have a back yard. but it makes a great bed for her adopted cat named selma, another oprah-inspired tradition. >> i look at her furry face and thank oprah for her. >> reporter: robin's husband said the year was stressful, but

it's taught them to communicate better. >> i feel morrow mantic than what i know about stedman. >> reporter: living the life of oprah and apparently loving it. >> robin has written a book about her experience, "living oprah: my one-year experiment to walk the walk of the queen of talk." robin, good morning to you. >> good morning. >> when you started the experiment in january of 2008, you say, look, i'm not one of these crazed oprah fans. so what was the point? >> i think the point is that women are inundate with the information about how we're supposed to be happy, how we're supposed to look, to outsiders and i think we buy into so much of it. you know and the magazine stands, on television. so i wanted to sew what would happen if one of us actually put all of this information to the test. and so i chose oprah, who has a lot of advice for women. >> certainly more than most people. she sort of is the one. you spent more than 1200 hours,

$4700 doing pretty much everything that oprah preached on her show, her website and in her magazine. best part of the experiment for you? maybe it's your cat? >> yes, my cat, i love selma. and i actually think one of the best parts was the hands-on philanthropy. i had my own book drive and gave books to women in prison and that meant a lot to me. >> and the worst part? >> putting my marriage through the wringer, even our sex life was redesigned by oprah. >> really? >> yes. >> is it better as a result? >> it was, let's see. it got a little boring, to be honest. i'm sorry, jim. it got a little boring. but now there's more flash to it, that's for sure. >> now that you're not living oprah. >> towards the end of the experiment you write in your book, everyone keeps reminding me that i should be having fun with this. and those words are like fingernails on a chalkboard. i'm not sure how they expect this year to be a big party. i barely see my friends, i'm bleeding money. i'm always busy, busy. i've allowed so many tv experts

to poke into my marriage. there's a lot of mending to do. in the end, was it a successful experiment for you? >> i think i came to a lot of self-realizations that i didn't have before. i actually didn't even realize that i was susceptible to all of this advice. so i really, i didn't know that i was addicted, i guess to these, you know, how to get flat abs in four weeks on the covers of magazines and how to live your best life. i'm so attracted to those words. so i think i learned a lot of work i have to do on myself. and so yeah, i'm really, really grateful for the year. >> you also talk in the book about how so many discussions and the revelations on oprah weren't really new. it was more about the packaging. you talk about her fans, their adulation of her. and did you learn something about human nature in general? >> i think one of the best things about oprah is that her audience looks at her like she's their bff, you know. so she's not, it doesn't feel like she's preaching. it feels like she's sharing.

but i do think, it felt as if we were this pack of high schoolers that was looking to the popular girl for advice, we could all be part of this clique. >> do you even watch this show any more? >> i don't. i watch the big ones, you know, i watch if she has sarah palin or whitney houston on, i'll watch it but other than that, i have quieter mornings now. >> how do you feel about her leaving her show? >> i have mixed feelings. i'm sad for chicago, i'm a chicagoan and she's an institution there. but i think she's proving a great example for those of us who are in a rut and people-pleasers and who you know, clearly her fans just want her to stay. but she's going out on top. and so i admire her choice, quite a bit. but i'll miss her. >> have you approached her -- you have a book, hello. >> no, i haven't approached her. so hopefully you know, who knows. maybe it's sitting on her bedside table right now under her cup of tea. >> well we generally hope. is this year about living robyn, i hope?

>> exactly. my whole year, i'm taking my power back. >> thank you so much. oprah, here's the book. back after your local news and weather. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. >> unfortunately, we are dealing with ice in many spots and it is creating problems up there. an accident at washington and monroe, and you can see some delays, volume-related, and out of the northeast. southbound 795 towards the west side, packed into our 29.

icy conditions here, and the same problems on philadelphia road, and the joppa farm road and the chopper region. on the outer loop east side, curtis creek a drawbridge, will shut down at 9:00 a.m. because of recurring work. on the inner loop is where they will have the two way traffic pattern. delays are expected there. southbound delays on the bw parkway towards west nursery road. if you're going to travel on the white marsh area, past white marsh towards the beltway, some allies. some -- delays. >> we should be up to 42 for the daytime high today. today is only about 31. right now, 13 is the wind chill at westminster. 14 is feeling like that at the airport. forecast keeps us below freezing. there is a slight chance of snow flurries.

the clouds will be thickening up this week as well. milder temperatures we will get to this week. a distinct chill of the weekend. we are into the upper 20s, with a good chance of snow on friday. >> another update at 8:55.

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8:30 on this monday morning, the 4th of january, 2010. a bone-chilling start to the day. here in rockefeller plaza, and our crowd is bundled up tight. as they struggle to get above freezing tempts today. meanwhile, the whole gang is

back together finally, and in just 39 days, we'll be having the make olympics where today's high is 44 degrees in vancouver. >> not bad. >> nice earmuffs, hon. >> thank you so much. >> you're adding something each time. your voice is getting a little worse. got to take care of that. coming up, by the way, one of the most popular olympic faces around here. speed skater, apollo anton ohno, he has the chance to become the most olympic decorated athlete in history. >> it's so exciting to see how he's doing. and we'll be talking to jean chatzky. checking in with her advice. she's part of our money 911 panel. we'll be checking to see whether or not the advice is paying off for our viewers. but first, the u.s. census bureau is kicking off its portrait of america road tour.

and here to tell us about it is u.s. secretary ever commerce, gary glock and u.s. census director, dr. gary gross. over the next four months, your census workers are going to be going out in vehicles like these, and what's the goal of the trip? >> the goal of the trip is to let people know that the census is coming. we need everybody to when they receive their forms, to fill it out, only ten questions, less than ten minutes. and mail it back in. because with that census form. will determine the allocation of some almost $400 billion of federal funds every year. that go out to cities, counties and states, based on the population. and in the tough economic times, when governments are cutting back, this is valuable money for schools, education, human services, for transportation. and the census is used to determine how many members of the house of representatives each state will get. some states could gain a few seats, some states might lose, so it's very important that everybody be fully counted. >> you've done a really good job

of answering the next questions. a lot of people hear -- census, and follow it with, yawn, all right? this is vitally important to people all across the country? >> it is very important. it's giving us a portrait of america. only ten questions, only ten minutes to answer, it will determine the allocation of federal funds to their communities for the next ten years and could actually give them more political power in the united states' congress. >> how this is going to work is the census, i understand dr. groves, is happening on march 2010, is that right? >> the forms go out in march and we want you to return your form by april 1. >> what's the biggest misconception? >> i think the biggest misconception about the census is that it's boring and long. and it turns out this is the shortest census in history. in our lifetimes. it takes every household just ten minutes to fill out and it's really important. it's easy and i think the other thing to know for many of your audiences is that this is a safe

thing to do. we have very strong laws that protect the confidentiality of this data. >> i want to say, you'll each be driving one of these vehicles, right? >> these advance will drive about 150,000 miles over the next few months. stop at 800 different events, they'll be at the super bowl. they'll be at march madness, they'll be everywhere. if you can't see the van yourself, where you can learn a lot about the census, you can follow us on 2010census.gov. we'll be tweeting, blogging, uploading youtube videos. >> it's 20 degrees, and dr. groves really wanted to get this message out. he's out here without a coat. >> this is nothing. >> this is a walk in the park. >> thank you very much. we want you to share what america looks like in your neighborhood. and what would surprise people about the demographics in your community. log on to todayshow.com to submit your photos and voice and

nbc news will pick entries from your submissions. how about a check of the weather, mr. roker? >> let's show you what's happening as far as your forecast is concerned today, bitterly cold throughout much of the country. rain throughout the pacific northwest. freezing fog in central nevada. snowshowers in the eastern great lakes. tomorrow that continues. the cold air continues as well. more wet weather in the pacific northwest. sunny and mind in the so >> today is going to be a very cold day. right now it feels like the low teens outside. winds aren't northwest league, a 15 to 20, and could

don't forget, any time of the day or night, check your weather on the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. when we come back, we'll check in with apollo ohno and find out about his views for the upcoming olympic games in vancouver. but

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>> this morning on today's countdown to vancouver, with 39 days until the opening ceremony, we're camping up with a man who could become the most decorated u.s. winter olympian ever. speed skater apolo anton ohno is heading to his third winter games, two gold medals, one silver, two bronze. the seattle native is known for his signature look, a bandana and soul patch. he took the title in season four of "dancing with the stars." apolo, good morning to you. could become the most decorated american athlete in the winter olympics, ever. what you hear that, what goes

through your mind? >> some chills. you know, i try to, first and foremost, i do my sport because i love it. i love being an olympian. i love going and representing my country. but to know that you know, i could be up there with some of the greats of olympians is amazing. but you know, i just love going out there and competing and giving it my best. >> you don't really focus on that? >> i try not to. >> you've been training very, very hard in salt lake city at the olympic oval there. it's where you competed in your first olympics back in 2002, winning the gold and the silver. is it nostalgia to be back there, training there? >> well it's, it's almost like i've come full circle. in the beginning of my career. i learned how to speed skate in vancouver bc. i'm from seattle. i learned how to skate in vancouver. my first olympic breakthrough career was in salt lake city. now towards the end of my career, i've moved back to salt lake city to train. and i'm essentially possibly

could be finishing my olympic experience in vancouver. so hopefully the circle has some underlying meaning, i don't know. i think so, i like 0 believe so. >> your dad used to take you to vancouver. you lived in seattle, he would drive you to vancouver to drain when you were just a kid. he's been soex a part of this process for you. >> a huge support. >> what does his support mean? >> everything. he's taught me, so many lessons that i learned from sport can be applicable towards any part of life in itself. that's why i think that you know, so many kids should be involved in sports and have a good time, you know. >> you should be training but you're here in new york and there's a reason why. why are you here? >> i'm here in new york. i should be training. i'm usually training. we're about to go into my final stage of preparation. but i'm here along with shawn johnson. we're here because necessarily, necessarily crunch has -- >> necessarily is one of your sponsors. >> one of my sponsors, yes. they've revamped basically one of the most delicious bars out there. the necessarily crunch bar.

i, my personal favorite is the chocolate. hers, she's into the crispies. so we went to park city. >> she challenged you, right? >> yes, she did a back-flip over a bobsled. we challenged each other to different events, kind of extreme. to see which team is better, team chocolate or team crispies. i went dune the luge on my skates. you can see that online on facebook.com/necessarithe facebook.com/nestlecrunch. >> did you really do that or is it superimposed. >> you've got to go to the website and see what you think. i actually did go down the luge. buff you have but you have to t look. >> i want to ask you the fact you're 27 years old and called yourself the old man on the

circuit. do you push yourself harder to work? >> i like to think that i always work hard. my belief in sport has always been, i don't want to leaveny regrets, so you know, other guys may, kind of just -- halfway do things. for me, i want to be 100% totally immersed in my sport. so when i do walk away, regardless of the outcome. i can say, you know what, i have no regrets. ky smile, regardless of what happens. life is too short to be able to not just say, i'm going to give 100% towards this thing. whatever the outcome. the result is not always in our control. in all aspects of life. for me, i truly believe, if i can go out there, prepare as best i can. walk away with no regrets, i'm still a champion. >> after the last olympics, you competed in "dancing with the stars." was that scarier than anything you've done on the ice? >> a couple of times on the show, i actually blacked out. when i'm in the games, skating, i'm in my element.

when i'm out there dancing in front of millions of people, i don't know what i'm doing, i'm very nervous. looking at some of these videos here, i can't believe i actually did that. it was a blast. a totally eye-opening experience. i learned a lot about myself. and it gave me a lot of confidence, i think that hopefully i can bring into the skating arena. >> rumor has it this might be your last olympics and you might segue into showbiz, is there any truth to that? >> i think possibly. if there's opportunities that lie in my path, absolutely. why not? >> we look forward to seeing you on the ice. >> thank you. >> apolo anton ohno, thank you. and the 2010 winter games in vancouver get under way on february 12th here on nbc. we'll be there for all of the action. up next, how they start 2010 on the right financial foot. but first, this is "today" on

back now at 8:45 with today's money 911. each week we have our panel of financial experts to answer your questions when it comes to money matters. now, "today" financial editor, jean chatzky has put a lot of her advice in the new book "money 911." your most pressing money questions answered, your money emergencies solved. this is a great idea. the book is a little bit like a reference guide. you don't have to read it cover to cover. you can kind of go in there and look for the problems you're dealing with. >> that's what i hope people do. i read the whole thing for the  audio book and nobody should read this book cover to cover. >> that's the first time an author has come on to say that. >> the publicist is now going to kill me. but here's the deal, it's all indexed. and when you have a money question, when you want to know, how do i fix my credit? what do i do about my insurance?

how do i handle my mother's estate? you want the answer now and you want it from a trusted source. it's like what to expect when you're expecting. >> and by the way, you deal with things like foreclosure, huge issues down to how to find coupons, which points out that when it comes to financial stability, no detail is too small. >> no detail is too small. the longest book i've ever written in 20 years of advice and information up to date. >> every wednesday we put you together, we put you to the test by letting viewers ask you questions about their money emergencies. and we wanted to bring some of those viewers back to kind of see how your advice worked for them or didn't work. >> or didn't. >> rose first asked her question in august. she wanted to know if it was still beneficial to put her money into a 529 plan. your advice at the time was -- >> my advice was take a look at the 529 and make sure you're in the right one for you. this was a time at which people had taken a real hit. but i believe for her state, i told her to stay put. >> she was living in ohio. rose is joining us on the phone

now enter cleveland. rose, good morning, happy new year. >> good morning jean and matt, happy new year to you. >> dell me about jean's advice, did it help you in that particular time? >> it absolutely did. she gave me a website to look at. it was savingforcollege.com. i did check it out. the fund i was in, had a 4 1/2 out of 5 cap rating which was good. and i called my adviser and found out i was in an age-based account. so my son, being a senior in high school would be well-served, it was adjusting itself. i didn't have to make any modification to make it more conservative. so it was absolutely spot-on advice and it really helped. >> in your case, jean can keep her job. would you change the advice now, jean, if times changed at all? >> no, absolutely not. you want to make sure you're in the right 529 plan for you. and all the references and resources and websites that we talk about in "money 911" so you can find them. >> are you a happy customer? >> i'm a happy customer, it was

worth the trip to new york and visit my sister. >> jean, kathy originally appeared back on "money 911" in march. she had a $500,000 in the stock market and it dropped to $350,000. with retirement just three years away, she wanted to know if they should take her money as is, or put it in a cd. you said what? >> i said do not take it out and move it to a cd. make sure that your assets are appropriately allocated for your age and then ride this out. >> kathy is joining us now via skype. kathy, do you love jean or do you want to come in here and throttle her? >> oh, no, no. i love her to pieces. absolutely love her to pieces. >> thank you, kathy. >> i'll tell you why, first off, one of the things you told me was to lay off the panic button at my age. which i was laying on heavily. because i thought, oh, wow, i only have a few years left. another thing you said was also to increase savings. which we did. and most importantly, to stay in the market. and i'll tell you what, if i had

gone the cd route, i probably would have made about, oh, 1.75% increase. and instead of dropping the 40% in the market we're now down only about 17%. >> so you've rebounded. >> so thank you so much. >> that's great, kathy. i just want to clarify, kathy, when you said i only have a few years left, you meant of working, not of living, right? >> right, working. >> all right, kathy, thanks. >> retirement lasts a really long time. so people need to understand. >> again, good advice in the book and you can kind of take -- do not read this book cover to cover. >> do not. just open it and use a little bit at a time. >> jean chatzky, thanks, you can read an excerpt of the book on our website. jean's going to be back in our next half hour. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

this morning on today's call to action, healing wounded warriors. in a program that caters specifically to women. here's nbc's kerry sanders. >> reporter: high in the colorado rockies, on the slopes at snowmass dramatically altered lives are evolving in the way these service members never expected. thanks to an organization called challenge aspen. military opportunities. or camo. >> nothing is beyond my reach. as long as i try. and that's the thing.

things that i haven't done before -- i want to be able to at least have the nerve to give it a try. >> reporter: 33-year-old irashekia henry is among a group of warriors learning to ski. each combat injury is different, but the vets here share one thing in common, they're all women. >> what have you discovered about the depths of america's gratitude? >> that it's limitless. >> nice, beautiful! >> so good to see the support that you know, americans like myself do have. it will make me cry. but -- i love it. i do. it touches my heart. >> over the past seven years, 35,000 members of the military have been wounded in combat in

iraq and afghanistan. almost 700 of them are women. >> it seems unrecognized until this point. that these women are not just arriving. they've been coming back from the war zones for sometime. >> they have. female service members account for 15% of active personnel and more have been killed and wounded in this conflict than any other time. >> reporter: while women and men face the same physical and mental challenges, the way they cope is very different. >> things happen when you're with women. i i've talked to some of the women this weekend and just some of the same things that are a concern for me, are a concern for them. >> reporter: and if you were with a group of guys? >> there's not that conversation. >> reporter: 33-year-old tara hutchinson was leading a patrol in iraq when an ied exploded. >> in that second that that pop happened, my body instantly went into shock. before i even knew what had happened, before i even looked

down and saw that my leg was basically severed -- >> reporter: tara, like the other women, said she started to look to her future only after opening up with other wounded women. >> you talk about the hard times that you've had with your kids or the struggles you've had with your marriage. and you know, maybe you take some advice away from that. something that might help you in the future. >> reporter: bonds forged on the side of a mountain, doing what none of them thought possible. zanetta adams proved it to herself and her kids. hey guys, how has she done, has she fallen? >> no, but let's go skiing now. >> this has been the most incredible week. >> reporter: a week of achievements capped off with a celebration. >> i'd really like to raise a toast to our very incredible inspirational female wounded warriors. female wounded women, fighting

their new battles together. for today, kerry sanders, nbc news, snowmass, colorado. just >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> could morning. i am mindy basara. several children were injured in an apartment fire in glen burnie. it started when the morning at around 10:30 warwickshire lane. a 2-year-old boy was taken to pediatrics with life-threatening injuries. two girls were treated for minor injuries. a burning pot of food

>> now let's take a look at the

forecast with sandra shaw. >> arctic surges in effect, where the cold search -- the deep freeze for much of the coast, including our neck of the woods. feels like 12 in westminster. today's forecast gives us an actual temperature below freezing, most likely. slight chance of snow flurries as well. gusty winds still hanging around. good chance of snow by friday. >> we will have another update at 9:25.